Spelling Bee resolved after 39 rounds

West Bourbon Elementary principal Tracy Smith stands with Bourbon County Spelling Bee champion Ben George, left and runner-up Madelyn Ard after the 2013 Bourbon County Spelling Bee on Thursday afternoon at WBE. (Laurie Sisk/Tribune)

UNIONTOWN -- Twenty of Bourbon County's best and brightest from both West Bourbon Elementary and Fort Scott Christian Heights displayed their mastery of spelling on Thursday afternoon during the 2013 Bourbon County Spelling Bee at WBE in Uniontown.

What resulted was 39 rounds of spelling, which included a 33-round stand-off between the two finalists, seventh grader Ben George and sixth grader Madelyn Ard, both of Uniontown.

The 20 contestants, from fourth through eight grades, included 10 students each from WBE and Christian Heights, The field of contestants was quickly narrowed after a brutal first round that saw half the spellers fall to words like "competence" and "commentary."

Round two narrowed the field from 10 to just four spellers and by round five, just Ard and George remained.

The duo successfully completed the spelling of words like "rotisserie" and "ineffable" during the two-person spelling marathon.

George eventually emerged as the winner, by correctly spelling the word "population," after Ard missed on "mildew."

It is the second-straight year George has won the Bourbon County Bee. Both George and Ard were presented with new hardcover dictionaries and George received a trophy.

He will now advance to the The Hays Daily News 2013 Sunflower Spelling Bee will be March 2 in Sheridan Hall's Beach/Schmidt Performing Arts Center at Fort Hays State University. The winner will advance to the Scripps National Spelling Bee May 26 to June 1 in Washington.

When asked how he planned to prepare for the state spelling bee, George's reply was quick and definite:

"Study."

He said the best tip he can give to future contestants is for them to study the origin of words and the rules for those particular languages for clues as to how to spell specific words.

"That really helps a lot," George said.

The event was coordinated by WBE language arts teacher Jenny Covey. Rhonda Hoener served as the pronouncer for the event, while Smith, USD 235 Superintendent Randy Rockhold and Ashley Morris, of Christian Heights served as judges.

For a photo gallery of contestants, visit www.fstribune.com.